Patent Troll Bill Gets Committee Date

The Senate Judiciary Committee will begin consideration of patent reform legislation on March 27.

The Patent Transparency and Improvements Act of 2013, introduced by Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), would require plaintiffs who file a patent case to disclose their beneficial owners using a standard already adopted by federal courts.

“America’s patent system is the envy of the world and an engine for job creation. Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have been working on meaningful, targeted legislation to combat patent abuses in our system. As chairman of the committee, I am committed to ensuring we move forward with meaningful legislation this spring,” Leahy said in a statement on Thursday.

“In order to ensure a timely markup of this important issue that affects American businesses, I will list bipartisan legislation for consideration on our next agenda. I look forward to the committee considering this important legislation.”

In particular, CUNA supports Section 5 of the bill as a way to combat the patent abuse.

“The provision would clarify that the Federal Trade Commission has enforcement authority over patent trolls that operate in unfair or deceptive ways, but it does not provide the FTC with the ability to make rules in this area,” said John Dwyer, president/CEO of $979 million New England Federal Credit Union in Williston, testifying on behalf of CUNA in a December Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.

“We believe the FTC should have the ability to evolve in its enforcement powers as trolls evolve, and rulemaking authority would provide the agency with the means to do this,” he said.